Research Technician, Summer Student/Researcher 2019

We are Critty & Rob! Critty is an undergraduate student at Quest University Canada studying Marine Ecology and Rob is a researcher from Salmon Coast Field Station. For the past few months, we have been working alongside Cedar Coast Field Station in their sea lice resistance monitoring program. Sea lice are a naturally occurring parasite to wild adult salmon. With the introduction of fish farms, sea lice have become a major issue to both wild and farmed salmon throughout the world. In recent years, Clayoquot Sound has experienced some of the highest levels of sea lice to date on native wild juvenile salmon populations. These incidences are likely due to poorly managed fish farms, which use pesticides to control the levels of lice on farms. Here at Cedar Coast, we are testing to see whether sea lice have developed resistance to these pesticides. The hope is that this work informs the management and conservation of wild salmon as vital keystone species to B.C.’s ecosystems and economy.